Czech history – this is a large quantity of many important events, dates and personalities. I have chosen only one of them and it's the period of Luxemburghs, because I think that one this kings was very important for our country and it's (her) next history. His name is Charles IV. But he wasn't the first man of this family on the czech throne.
The first Luxembourgh ruling in our country was John of Luxemburgh – the son of Henry the seventh Luxembourgh. Jindřich became the Roman king and he wanted to get over the czech aristocracy, so he wedded his son with Elisabeth the Přemyslid, the incoming czech queen. John was crowned in the year 1310. He was a good king, who got well along with the czech aristocracy. This proclaim the “Inaugural diploma”, that ratify some rights to the aristocrats. For example the king undertook not to invest the functions to the foreigners. He interested himself only for the foreign policy.
We can see his contribution for our kingdom. John of Luxembourgh let here stamp the gold coins and in the time of his rule the bishopric in the Prague was upgrated to the archbishopric. He brought to the kingdom some conquests: Chebsko, Upper Lusatia, Wroclaw and the north part of Italy.
John send his first-born son Wenceslas to France to education and he wedded him with Blanche of Valois. Then, in the year 1346, he was killed in the battle of Kresčak and his son became the czech king Charles IV.
Charles IV. was interested in the events in his country more than his father. In the year 1355 he was crowned as the Roman caesar and Bohemia became the political centre of the empire. Prague became the capital city and there was build the first university in our country. Charles let built many castles too – for example Karlsberg (Kašperk), Karlskrone (Rodyně) or the best-known czech castle – Karlštejn.
Charles wasn't only the ruler, he was a very clever person too. He was able to speak five languages – Latin, German, Czech, French and Italian. He wrote a autobiography called “Vita Caroli”. He respected St. Wenceslas as the biggest czech saint. He let build the St. Wenceslas chapel in the St. Witus Cathedral and the Prague castle let he rename as the Castle of St. Wenceslas. From this time is the St. Wenceslas crown. Charles self made a list of the rules of the coronation ceremony. He had four wifes: the first was the Blanche of Valois, the next one Anna of Falc, Anna of Svidnik and the last and the only wife, which lived longer then he, was Elisabeth of Pomořany.
During the Charles life it happened many changes in our politic. The situation between the aristocrats and the king did quiet down for the long time and the high aristocracy got more part in the driving of the country. The king's assistants were for example Ernest of Pardubice or John Očko of Vlašim. One of the important documents of his rule is the “Maiestas Carolina”. It was a constitution of the czech kingdom, but the king was starved by the aristocracy to cancel it. Next very important document was the “Gold Bull of Charles”, in that he fixed the rules for the vote of the Roman monarch. He said that the majority of electers has to agree to vote the monarch and they all have to speak Czech, Italian and German. He enacted the woman succession, when there are no man successors. This Bull stood till the end of the Roman empire.
Charles had three sons. The oldest son Wenceslas was crowned as the czech king in his age of two years and in the age of fifteen he became the Roman caesar. The second son Zikmund and the third son John became only some domains in the kindgdom.
Wenceslas IV. ruled in economic and political strong state, but he had many problems with the church. The biggest problem he had to lose was the papacy schism.The king was loyal to the Avignon pope, but the Prague archbishop John of Jenštejn received the pope in Rome. There were many reform-gospellers too and the church was often criticised. The situation was worse and worse and there was a good atmosphere for the rise of the Hussite movement.
3. srpen 2008
5 127×
726 slov
